Weight loss corrosion and stress corrosion cracking are serious problems in sulfur bearing sour gas environments. The combined effects of H2S, CO2, ionic strength of the aqueous phase, temperature and pressure are well known, but the action of sulfur was often
overrestimated resulting in costly corrosion resistant alloys (CRAS) for downhole equipment. The test environments to simulate the effect of sulfur on corrosion contain actually sulfur and H2S without considering the actual phase behavior during production. The aim of this paper is to discuss the complications associated with the presence of elemental sulfur in downhole production environments, The understanding of the involvement of sulfur in corrosion mechanisms and the strategy for controlling or alleviating the deleterious corrosion effects enable the application of standard CRAS or carbon steels for downhole equipment.
Keywords: sour gas wells, sulfur corrosion, weight loss corrosion, hydrogen sulfide, carbon steels, corrosion resistant alloys, downhole environment